SONG: Hymn of Acxiom (a penintential cover)

SONG: “Hymn of Acxiom” (a penitential cover). (available as .ogg here)

ARTIST: grant.

SOURCE: This isn’t based on research. It’s a cover of “Hymn of Acxiom,” a song by Vienna Teng, recorded because I was late for December’s song. I largely relied on this live version, although I can’t deny the whole marching-band phenomenon also played a role.

ABSTRACT:
Is obsession ever a pretty thing?

I mean that both for creative people and for computer systems. So much data to be gathered. Such libraries each of us are, just waiting to be read cover to cover to cover to cover.

This is a pretty great song that I only discovered 10 years too late on an episode of a podcast usually more dedicated to occultism and postmodern film. Apparently, David Byrne has also written the song up.

So, after earworming myself with it and learning all sorts of things about Reaper’s built-in vocal harmonizer features, I decided I’d try recording this song myself just, really, to get it out of my system. My reflex usually is to celebrate technology that modifies my voice – a thing that creates harmonies and “robotizes” me really hits a sweet spot – but I don’t think another robot chorus-version of this song needs to exist. Instead, I thought it’s a good enough skeleton that it could survive the opposite treatment. I stripped it down to a single voice and guitar.

Which meant learning the chords and some crazy key changes in the bridge/third section. (Is that three modulations? Four? How the song feels like it ascends back into the key it starts from for the final verse is still a slightly astonishing bit of sleight of hand to me.) It meant practicing singing out loud a lot more than I’m used to these days. I think it was good for me, ultimately.

So this is me, singing, with one guitar, into the Voice Memo of my cellphone perched on my knee. It’s not entirely bare – I added a touch of reverb and the Martin Duet effect for body, some Xcomp compression EQ to try to overcome the hissy boxiness of an iPhone mic, and I did stitch together bits from two takes around the key change because high notes are hard. But there’s no double-tracking at all. No harmonies. Most of the crazy chords (C#madd9? Say what now?) were just done by walking one finger up the fretboard, as if this was a folk song instead of a baroque-manque oratorio. I don’t know if Woody Guthrie would approve, but maybe Simon Joyner would.

If you’re reading this and you think maybe you could do better, I encourage you to try. Not just as a challenge, but also because I think you’ll get something out of the process. And also – I think more people need to know this song. Nothing in it is wrong (except maybe the C#add4/G# that leads into the bridge … and it’s supposed to be that way).

Somebody hears you.

LYRICS:
(with chords adapted liberally from a transcription here.)

[Verse]
D/A G
somebody hears you. you know that. you know that.

D/A G Dsus4 D
somebody hears you. you know that insi – – de.

G A Bm F#5
someone is learning the colors of all your

G A Bm D/F# D G/D
moods, to show that you’re un – derstood.
↘ say just the right thing and ↗

Em/B D/A Asus4/C#
here you’re known.

[Verse]
D G
leave your life open. you don’t have. you don’t have to…

D G Dsus4 D
leave your life open. you don’t have to hi – – de.

G A Bm F#m
someone is gathering every crumb you

G A Bm F#m G/D
drop, these moments you long forgot.
↘ mindless decisions and ↗

Em D C#add4/G# C#sus4/G#
keep them all.

[Bridge]
F#m G G/A Dsus4 D
let our formulas find your sou – – l.

A (baroque tweedle) Em D A
We’ll divine (we will divine) your artesian source (in your mind),

Em D C# (baroque tweedle)
marshal feed and force (our machines will)

F#m Bm F#m/A E/G# E/F# E
to design you a per-fect lo – – – ve (better still)

Bm F#m G#sus4 G#
or a per-fect lu – – st.

C#madd9 A/C#
oh how glorious, glorious:

G A
a brand new need is born.

[Verse]
D G
now we possess you. (you’ll own that. you’ll own that.)

D G Asuswhatev
now we possess you. you’ll own that in time.

G A Bm F#m
now we will build you an endlessly upward

G A Bm D/F# D G
wo – – rld, em – – brace you for all you’re worth
↘ reach in your pocket ↗

Em/B D/A Asus4
is that wrong?

Em D Asus2 A
isn’t this what you wa – – nt?

[Outro]
D5 Dmaj7 Dm7b5 Asus4/D Dsus4/A Am7b5 D
Ah – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – men.